5-Day Structure (Google Ventures Model)
Monday: Understand
- Map the challenge (user journey, business goals)
- Expert interviews (15-20 min each)
- Define sprint question: 'Can we [desired outcome]?'
- Pick target: specific user + specific moment
Tuesday: Diverge
- Lightning demos (existing solutions, inspiration)
- Sketching: 4-step sketch (notes, ideas, crazy 8s, solution sketch)
- Silent critique: everyone reviews sketches with dot votes
Wednesday: Decide
- Sticky decision: vote on winning approaches
- Storyboard: map the prototype flow scene by scene
- Assign roles for prototype building
Thursday: Prototype
- Build a realistic-looking facade (doesn't need to work)
- Tools: Figma prototype, HTML/CSS, Keynote/Slides
- Realistic content (no lorem ipsum)
- Divide and conquer: each person builds sections
Friday: Test
- 5 user interviews, 1 hour each
- Interviewer + note-takers in separate room
- After each session: quick debrief
- End of day: pattern identification, decisions
When to Sprint
- New product or major feature (high uncertainty)
- Team disagreement on direction (need alignment)
- Tight timeline (compress weeks of debate into one week)